The Lioness' Daughter - The Fourth Chapter
by Edith
Summary: Yet another chapter. much happens in this one, but you're going to have to read it to find out what. Please read the other chapters first.


> _A/N: Oh my, I'm actually posting the next chapter this quickly? Please read it and leave what you think in the box below. that simple action means a lot =) Again, thanks to everyone who has reviewed the previous chapters!_

  
They arrived at nightfall in a small village called Wathelyne. 

"We''ll stay here."Growled Gawain. He drew his horse up outside a small inn. Morgan nodded and sleepily followed her friends to the stables. After bidding goodnight to Winter, she trudged up into the inn, where the chubby innkeeper was talking. 

"You''ll need to get your own water. There''s a well out there."He said, pointing a fat finger behind him. "you want food, you pay extra. you want drinks, you pay extra."He looked disapprovingly at their bedrolls. "You want more blankets, you pay extra." 

Gawain looked set to argue, but the rest of the group walked up the stairs to the rooms without complaint. 

"I''ll meet you out here in a few minutes for supper."Matthew told Morgan before disappearing into his room. Calum looked down at his dusty clothes and skin and grimaced. 

"I think i'll go fetch water for washing."He said. Morgan nodded and walked into her room, too tired to notice the grime and smell the room played host to. spreading out her bedroll, she rubbed her eyes. The ride had taken a lot out of her, and she hadn''t slept well the night before due to excitement. The trip so far had little effect on the squires and knights, having endured much more in their training. Aleks was as tired as she was - Morgan could have sworn she saw her friend doze off more than once on his horse''s back. As for Nikos, try as she might, Morgan could no't see his face to tell if he was tired. However when he spoke, his voice held no trace of the strain it had when she had first heard it. 

Morgans stomach grumbled. Giving the bed a longing look, she left the room and met Matthew in the hall. 

The squire had opened his mouth to speak, when the pair heard a cough from the room Gawain had been given. Grinning wickedly at Morgan, Matthew held a finger to his lips and crept towards the closed door. 

"It''s going well."They heard Gawain speak." "They suspect nothing, I''m sure. The priests did a good job of making sure that girl does not know the full extent of Phaidon''s words."There was a brief silence and Morgan rubbed her nose, frowning. 

They heard the creak of a chair and a sigh from within the room. "It will be over very soon. The girl will find it, give it to us, and we''ll hold all of the world by the throat."They heard footsteps coming towards the door and the pair retreated quickly down the stairs. 

They didn''t speak until they were outside in the inns tiny backyard. 

"What was that about?"Morgan asked Matthew, her eyes wide. 

He shook his head, frowning. "In one of the meetings you weren''t at, King Jonathan asked the priest to tell us what Phaidon''s book can do. The priest said, that when the words are spoken, a doorway to nothingness appears." 

Morgan nodded. This she already knew. 

Matthew continued. "The priest also said that depending on the will of the person saying the words, the doorway can range in size and strength. At its weakest, the doorway can be only a tiny pinprick in size, taking only what is forced through. At its strongest...The doorway can fit the world, and it''s so strong it sucks it through, turning the world into nothingness." 

Morgan was silent as what she had learnt sunk in. She looked up at Matthew alarmed. "Gawain is going to use the book as a bargaining tool. All he has to do is threaten to read the words and he has jewels falling at his feet." 

Matthew nodded grimly. "I"t seems like it." 

Suddenly the inn door burst open, causing the pair to jump. Morgan calmed down when she saw Calum peering into the night. 

"Ah. There you are."He said, grinning. "I''ll been looking for you - suppers ready." Morgan and Matthew exchanged looks and reaching a silent agreement, beckoned Calum towards them. 

"Shut the door."Hissed Morgan. Raising an eyebrow, Calum obeyed and joined them. Keeping her voice in a whisper, Morgan told Calum what they had heard. When she had finished, Calum stepped way, a look of utter shock on his face. With a pang of guilt Morgan remembered that Gawain was his knight master. 

"Are...are you sure?"Calum whispered hoarsely. Morgan nodded miserably. "What are you going to do?" 

Morgan looked up, determined. "There''s only one thing I can do. We have to leave tonight and find the map before he does. We have to destroy it." 

Matthew nodded is agreement, but Calum was still pale. Beads of sweat had formed on his brow, threatening to gather and drip. 

"We?"He whispered. "Gawain is my knightmaster, I have to obey and follow him." 

"Fine then."Morgan snapped. "Go help him destroy the world. We''ll leave without you." 

Calum looked alarmed. "All right, I''ll come." 

+++ 

That night at supper, Morgan and Matthew exchanged nervous looks, while Calum made sure that his knightmasters wineglass was kept full. The squire had insisted that the best way of leaving was that night with the knight drunk and sleeping in his room. 

Aleks sat opposite Morgan, picking at his food. He glanced up and met Morgans eyes. The girl felt a flash of pity when she realised that her friend was terrified. 

She had caught Aleks before he had reached the inns common room, and had told him the plan. The commoner had at first refused emphatically to participate, until Morgan had threatened him with horrible stories of what Gawain would do to him once they left. She hated forcing her friend, but she hated the idea of leaving him alone even more. Morgan smiled reassuringly at Aleks, but instead of smiling back he just stared glumly down at his plate. 

Morgan was glad when supper was over. She escaped to her room and began packing. Struggling to close straps of her pack, a huge wave of sleepiness hit her. She bit her lip, forcing the tiredness back _you must NOT go to sleep!_ she ordered herself. Giving herself several hard pinches, she sat on a hard stool - the only chair in the room - and began waiting. After several minutes, her head lolled forward and her hands, which had been balled into tight fists, relaxed. 

"Morgan...hey..._Morgan_"The urgent whisper dragged Morgan from her sleep. 

"Ungh?"She groaned, rubbing her neck. Why had she decided to sleep sitting up? Something jabbed her hard in the ribs, and she yelped, stumbling from her stool. 

"Shhh!"Morgan shook her head to clear her sleep-fogged vision. She realised that Calum, Matthew and Aleks were standing around her, saddle bags at their side. With a rush, the nights events came back to her and she grimaced. 

"I *thought* we were supposed to meet in the hall."Aleks muttered, glaring at her. Morgan glared back with equal vehemence. Both were extremely hard to get along with when they were not rested thoroughly. 

"Lets go, we don''t want to waste time."Morgan said, grabbing her bags. 

"Oh no, we wouldn''t want to do that."Aleks said under his breath as he followed her out the door. 

In the stables Winter snorted her protest at a night time ride. "I''m sorry girl" Morgan whispered. She fastened her bags and turned to face the other three. Matthew stared back with a look as determined as hers. Calum was pale, but he held his head high. Aleks refused to meet her eyes, instead giving the walls a black look. _This is more than just grouchiness_ Morgan realised. _He really is mad at me!_ She sighed and opened the stable door, resolving to have a talk with Aleks later. 

"Lets go."She said. 

The four led their horses quietly out of the village. Once out of sight of the inn, they mounted silently and urged their horses into a gallop. They had no plan as of yet; the only thing they had decided upon was to put as much distance between them and Gawain as possible. 

The sky was slowly loosing its inky darkness when they saw the rider ahead on the road. Matthew brought up his mount, and the rest followed suit. The quartet stared. The rider sat on his black horse, both still in the middle of the road. There was a gust of wind, and his black cloak billowed softly around him. "Nikos"Morgan breathed. 

+++ 

Nikos led them to a small clearing off the side of the road. The youths trudged behind him, leading their horses. Morgan brought up the rear, her shoulders sagging. She was much too tired put up a fight, even though a part of her mind urged her to do *something*. Bitterly she kicked at a stone, clutching at Winter when she stumbled off balance. _Goddess, am I really this tired?_ She thought. 

She left Winter with the other horses and sat next to Calum on the ground. 

The four looked resignedly at Nikos, who was standing over them. 

"I knew you were all up to something."When Nikos spoke, it was not with the harsh tones Morgan expected. "The way you were acting at supper...The goddess told us you would catch on quickly."Morgan blinked at the cloaked man. 

"What?"her voice sounded dull. 

"My purpose on this journey is to help _you_ get the book, Morgan." 

Morgans head snapped up. "You _knew_"She accused. A surge of anger came over her. Forgetting her fatigue, she jumped to her feet. "You knew what Gawain was planning, and you didn''t say a word - not one word - about it to the King. How could you?"The tiny girl was so angry she didn''t notice her hand had moved to grip her sword hilt. "You could have saved everyone a lot of trouble, and if Gawain gets the book, it''ll be your fault!"Nikos stood there silently and Morgan felt her anger building. "People will die! do you not care? - and that *stupid* way you cover your face, are you really that vain?"Morgan broke off, breathing heavily. Calum, Aleks and Matthew remained on the ground, staring shocked at the Diyari Warrior. None of them seemed to be able to speak. 

Nikos sighed. He remembered ruefully that the goddess had warned him the girl would be difficult. 

"Yes, I did know."He admitted. "As to not saying a word, I was working under the goddess'' instructions. What good would it have done, anyway? Gawain would have been captured but word that the Book actually exists would have leaked out and another person would seek it. I was to stay with you, Morgan. The priests weren no't lying when they said you would be the one find it. When you did, I was to take it and destroy it."He paused, watching the girl in front of him battle to stay quiet. "I do care that people will die if the book is read - that''s why I follow the Goddess'' orders."Nikos paused again, this time he appeared to be battling with himself. When he finally spoke, his voice was quiet. "As to my face, Morgan, I have already told you the reasons for it being covered. I am not vain."With a sweeping movement, he removed the cloak from his face. 

Morgan gasped, and similar sounds from the ground showed her friends shared her reaction. 

The man in front of her had dark brown hair with a few lightened streaks as the result of staying in the sun for too long. His blue-black eyes held a curious slant that Morgan couldn''t place, and his face had been kept free from beard or moustache. What had made the quartet gasp, however, was the blue-coloured scar that traced its way down in a curious pattern from his left cheek down to his neck. 

"It is a technique that we use. we use needles to force ink below our skin to form permanent markings on our skin."Nikos explained. He stared at them calmly. "All Diyari have it done when they join us. Not all have it done on their face." 

"Why did you choose your face?"Matthew asked timidly. He stood up to join Morgan, staring at Nikos with an expression mixed with shock, disgust, and awe. 

"I did not choose."Nikos said, curtly. Mistaking their looks, he said "I do not regret it, either. To have this mark done is the pride of all Diyari." 

The sun had risen by now, and Nikos began walking towards his pack. "We''ll sleep here" He called over his shoulder. Calum and Aleks stood at the mention of sleep and grabbed their bedrolls from their horses. Morgan and Matthew followed. While the four set up their mats, Nikos walked around their hasty camp in a circle, drawing something Morgan knew to be a protective circle. Nikos sensed her gaze and turned. "When the knight awakens, he''ll ride out immediately to look for you."He explained. "This will hold him off and hide us from him while we sleep." 

Morgan lay down in her bedroll, relief hitting her as her head finally touched the pillow. She was glad Nikos was with them. With that hood off his face, he was a much less imposing figure, and Morgan felt trust and friendship in him. _Not to mention that without him we''ll probably be back with Gawain by now _she thought dryly as she drifted off to sleep. 

+++ 

> _A/N: Once again, stay tuned for the next chapter (which would be chapter five) for battles with the nasties and battles within the group (don't forget Aleks is wasting energy being mad at Morgan) _
> 
> Just thought I'd clear something up as well. I did_ borrow Gawain's name from the Arthurian legends, but it was the name only - none of the 'most noble knight' attitude seemed to have rubbed off. In fact, there's another Authurian name I borrowed - can you pick which character and which legend figure it is? Like Gawain, this character doesn't have any of its namesakes traits. _


End file.
